Many social network websites allow users to “check in” at various physical establishments, such as at a store, entertainment venue, or the like. The current check-in technology allows check-in at physical locations based upon a physical address (e.g., street address, etc.) or a fixed GPS coordinate. Using check-in technology, users can check in to a specific location by text messaging or by using a mobile application on a smartphone. The smartphone application typically uses the location of the phone (using triangulation, GPS, etc.) to identify the current location of the user. The user's current location is then matched against physical locations, such as businesses, venues, etc., that have registered their physical locations with the social network website. When a match is found, the social media website is able to report that the user has “checked into” a particular physical establishment. One approach that is used by many applications is to provide a list of “places” that displays a list of nearby places to the user. If the user's desired place is on the list, the user simply selects the appropriate place from the list. However, if a location is not on the nearby places list, the user can add the location directly from the phone. Once a user has checked in, they have the option of sharing their location with friends in one or more social network websites. The social network website typically shares the information with other users by posting a comment or other text that is visible to other users.